Our present invention relates to a garment link and, more particularly, to a garment link which can be attached to at last one strap and which can be utilized in brassieres, lingerie, bathing suits and indeed, any garment in which two strap portions are to be linked together or a strap is to be connected to some other garment part.
Links with loops engageable by straps of a garment are utilized in lingerie and elsewhere to effect the connection between two strap portions or a strap portion and another garment part, usually with the strap portion being passed through the loop or to allow adjustment of the effective strap length and hence the manner in which the garment fits the individual.
The links provided heretofore for this purpose were scarcely aesthetic and frequently had limited versatility. Separability of parts of the link was usually not available and even where the link was small, it was frequently unsightly.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved garment link which obviates the drawbacks mentioned previously.
More particularly, it is a specific object of the invention to provide a more aesthetic and versatile garment link which is more comfortable to use than earlier garment links, is more versatile with respect to association of the link with the garment and which is capable of offering additional functions.
Still another object of the invention is to provide an improved method of making a garment link and an improved garment provided with the garment link.
These objects and others which will become apparent hereinafter are attainable in a garment link, preferably a two loop garment link which has a pair of loops each engageable by a strap, in which the parts carrying the two loops can rotate at least limitedly with respect to one another and in which a central portion at least can be selected to suit aesthetic demands of a particular garment, enabling the central portion to be selected from a set of members of different function or appearance as will be described.
The invention is also applicable to a garment link for the purposes described having only a single loop and whose other side may be permanently affixed to a portion of the garment, e.g. by being welded thereto, stitched thereto or otherwise permanently attached.
According to a feature of the invention, the garment link can comprise:
an annular support;
a pair of loops on the support, each of the loops being configured to receive a respective strap; and
a central member received in the annular support and visible from an obverse side of the link.
The support can include an annular member having a throughgoing hole and one of the loops can be fixed to the annular member and the other of the loops can be affixed to the front part of the support which can have a projection receivable in the annular member so that the two loops are interconnected by a push-button fit and can rotate at least limitedly relative to one another.
This alone creates a high degree of versatility for the link, since loops of different size and different styles may be used together in the link and the loops and the portions molded therewith can be of different texture or color as well.
The loops, for example, may be spanned by bars which subdivide the loops into windows above and below the bar and hence the opening of the loop may appear to be large but the loop can be capable of accommodating narrower or thinner straps as may be desirable.
The bars may be convex toward both of the windows delimited by them or can be concave toward one window and convex toward the other.
The invention is applicable as well to a link in which only one loop is provided and the snap connection between the loop-carrying member and a female part permanently affixed to the garment by stitching or welding, allows the interconnection of the two parts.
In any case, it has been found to be advantageous to provide an opening in the front part of the support which receives a selected one of a set of possible decorative and/or functional elements, referred to herein as xe2x80x9cstonesxe2x80x9d utilizing the terminology of the fashion and jewelry trades, although the central element which is received in its xe2x80x9csettingxe2x80x9d in the front annular member need not be composed of mineral matter and indeed usually is composed of synthetic resin material.
According to the invention, the front annular member can be a setting for a jeweled element, i.e. one which is facetted or has the appearance of facets and/or a coloring element imparting a corresponding color to the center of the link as is present in one or the other of the loops or a contrasting coloration and/or a texturing element imparting a smooth, granular or fabric-like texture to the links and/or a planar element and/or a convex or concave element and/or a transparent or translucent element and/or a scent-releasing element and/or a light-emitting element.
For example, the stone set into the annular member may be colored or a clear reflective element in visible light but may contain photoluminescent material so that it can glow in the dark. It may have a diamond (jewelled) appearance or the appearance of a glass. The selected central member can be formed with the projection snap-fitted into the rear annular member.
According to an important feature of the invention, however, the stone set into the front annular member is a scent releasing container which may be referred to as a perfume stone. IN all cases, the stone is permanently emplaced in the annular member and may be ultrasonically welded thereto.
The perfume stone according to the invention advantageously has a cavity open toward its reverse side while its obverse side is defined by a wall of that cavity visible from the front or obverse of the link and pierced through by laser drilling with a multiplicity of capillary passages which communicate with the cavity. The rear of the cavity is closed, e.g. by a disk welded to the perfume container or the annular member receiving it and, according to the invention, once the cavity has been closed off by the disk, the unit, either the perfume stone itself or the perfume stone mounted on the link member carrying same, is immersed in a perfume liquid whereby the capillaries draw the liquid into the cavity and in use dispenses the scent through the capillaries over an extended period of time. The link may be recharged with perfume by application of a drop of perfume with a dropper on the perforated central surface.
The perfume stone itself has a utility apart from the links of the invention and may be mounted on garments other than by the loops mentioned previously.
According to a feature of the invention, the disk which is welded to the container is provided with the projection which enables the two parts of the link to be joined together by a snap or push-button connection in the manner described.